Wounded ABC News journalists improving

Jan Sliva, The Associated Press

Published 10:00 pm, Monday, January 30, 2006

LANDSTUHL, Germany -- ABC News anchor Bob Woodruff and cameraman Doug Vogt were showing signs of improvement Monday after being seriously injured in a roadside bombing in Iraq, according to the network and officials at the military hospital caring for them.

Woodruff, 44, briefly opened his eyes Monday and responded to stimuli to his hands and feet, the network said.

ABC News President David Westin said it may be possible for the men to be flown back to the United States as early as today.

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Gamble said their body armor likely saved them.

It was not immediately clear whether shrapnel had penetrated Woodruff's brain or if he was suffering from a concussive injury, said former NBC News anchor Tom Brokaw, a Woodruff family friend.

"The doctors had told them once they arrived that the brain swelling had gone down. In Bob's case, that had been a big concern. Yesterday they had to operate and remove part of the skull cap to relieve some of the swelling," Brokaw said on NBC's "Today" show.

Woodruff also had a broken collarbone and broken ribs.

Vogt was filming a standup report with Woodruff, and both were standing in the open hatch of an Iraqi military vehicle when the roadside bomb exploded. Vogt's injuries were less serious and he was talking and joking with colleagues Monday, ABC said.

ABC News was coming to grips with what Woodruff's injuries mean for the future of the recently revamped newscast.